The Ohio State Buckeyes are coming off one of the worst defeats in the Urban Meyer Era. The loss at the hands of Clemson was one of the worst offensive displays in recent memory, dating back to 2011, when Ohio State finished 6-7 and it proved that wholesale changes needed to be made on the offensive side of the ball.

Coach Meyer made the necessary changes during the off season bringing in a new Offensive Coordinator Kevin Wilson and Quarterbacks Coach Ryan Day, and collectively his squad will be looking to improve the passing game and bring back the sizzle to the Buckeye offense. The offense will need to maintain a balance between the passing and the ground game to secure another playoff berth in the 2017 season.

The goal is set firmly in place, but the Buckeyes will have to traverse through a perilous road to secure another coveted spot in this years College Football Playoffs. The goal will be attainable because 7 of the 12 games will be played at home and the home field advantage in The Shoe, helps the Buckeyes chances. Unfortunately, 5 of the 12 games are going to be played away from home, far from the confines of Ohio Stadium.

According to Alexander P., odds maker at mytopsportsbooks.com, “Ohio State is the modest favorite to win the Big Ten despite losing three first-round talents to the NFL. While they have a tough schedule ahead, the fact that they get to host Penn State and Oklahoma is a massive advantage. Their toughest road game is against a Michigan team that’s arguably losing even more key pieces. The Buckeyes should be good for ten wins, if not more.”

It’s the 7 of 12 games on this season’s schedule that can shift the Buckeyes from being modest favorites, however. They’ll be taking place at home, at The Shoe. Home field advantage definitely helps the Buckeyes, but they will still be tested during those games.

The big games on the home slate will begin with a tilt with the Sooners. Oklahoma will come into town in week 2 looking for some revenge after the Buckeyes came to Norman and embarrassed them. The Buckeyes will welcome Penn State in week 9 to get some payback after they fell in Happy Valley a season ago. In week 11, Michigan State will visit after a down year to potentially spoil season for the Buckeyes.

This years non-conference home games providea decent level competition as well, with Army being the most dangerous of the bunch. Army finished 8-5 and they run the triple option, which will test the Buckeyes Defense. UNLV will be coming in after a down year, after they finished 4-8.

The Buckeyes will also welcome two up-and coming conference foes in Maryland and Illinois to The Shoe. Both coaches are looking for their signature wins, and what better opportunity that spoiling the Buckeyes chances at the Playoffs?

D.J. Durkin worked under Meyer at Florida before taking a job at Michigan over Ohio State. Lovie Smith has the NFL Head Coaching experience that could turn the program around. So the Buckeyes shouldn’t take these two teams lightly.

5 of the 12 games will be played away from home and at hostile stadiums across Big Ten country. The Buckeyes open the new season against an Indiana team that always gives the defense headaches. The kicker is the offensive genius in Kevin Wilson does not lead that program anymore and he now calls the shots on offense for the Buckeyes.

From there, the Buckeyes will face off against another former coach in Chris Ash. He is looking to resurrect a Rutgers program and will look for improvement in year 2 as the Head Coach.

The most intriguing away game will be played at Lincoln against Nebraska due to the heated Wide Receiver battles that both position coaches engage in on the recruiting trail. They constantly butt heads and it often ends with fireworks and subtweets between the two.

The Buckeyes will then travel to Kinnick Stadium for a gritty, Big Ten style game. The battles in recent memory have been low scoring affairs, and it will be interesting to see how they rebound after falling apart toward the end of last season.

The Buckeyes will cap their season off with a stopover at the Big House to engage in another installment of The Game. With both teams suffering losses to the NFL Draft and with graduations, this will be fascinating as new pieces will face off in another high-stakes game for all the marbles. The road to the Playoffs will run through The Big House and this clash will not disappoint.

The expectation is clear at Ohio State, but with key starters returning for redemption, the Buckeyes will look to build something special this year and for years to come. J.T. Barrett returns to lead the team in his last season to rebound after the Fiesta Bowl. He will have new pieces to play around and with new coaches on the staff, there is no reason to think good things are on their way.

Ohio State is has one of the deepest teams in recent memory and they certainly reload year after year, before and after the draft. The players on the two-deep projections and beyond can play anywhere in the nation as they anxiously await for their shot. They remaining players from last season are battle-tested and they will look to lead their younger teammates and their new starters.

The road will most certainly not be easy, but the overall schedule favors Ohio State with the majority of their games being played at home. The rest of the Big Ten however, will not cooperate and they will try to play spoiler to ruin another shot at a title for Coach Meyer and his squad, and they most certainly will not go out quietly.

For more content or information on the projected Win/Loss total for every Big Ten Team please visit the link below:

This was the week that King Cardale Jones returned as the starter of the reigning National Champions Buckeyes. This was also the week that Captain J.T. Barrett had to sit out after his OVI fiasco from last week. The Minnesota game was interesting and as expected the Buckeyes pulled away in the second half while Jones is at the helm. I am not a Cardale hater by any means. I mean, I have no need or want to because he brought us the National Championship, but I also call it like I see it. Without the reliable deep threat, he cannot spread defenses out. The lack of mobility is evident and he just flat out struggles in the offense. With that being said he also seems to be distracted for some reason. I don’t know what it is and I cannot put my finger on it, but he looks like something is bothering him. It isn’t affecting his production on the field, but as a fan, it is getting annoying. I for one know that the Buckeyes should be destroying everyone they have played, but with Jones as the starter, the offense as a whole plays to the level of their opponents. It has to stop. Please make it stop.

Recruiting Battles:

Well it finally happened! The Kareem Walker drama finally revealed it’s ugly head. At last it is finally over. The “I am committed, but I will continue to take my visits” drama is finally over! Walker would’ve been a nice addition to this years class but he is obviously scared of competition. I mean we have Mike Weber from last years class and Antonio Williams from this years class. We sorely needed another slot to maximize the talent pool as well so good luck young man! I am not bitter, we needed an opening and we can now focus on recruiting more talent.

With the extra slot, we have 3-5 more spots and it will be an interesting couple of months prior to National Signing Day. I am hoping that we snag a couple of blue-chippers that will contribute as soon as they arrive on campus. The targets that are still high up on the board are Michigan Linebacker Daelin Hayes, California Linebacker Mique Juarez. Hayes was present during the Minnesota – Ohio State game and he came away impressed. Certainly an interesting turn of events, but I do not expect anything concrete. Although it is well known that the Buckeyes want to add one more linebacker to this years class, but I won’t be a bit surprised if they take both of the ones mentioned above.

The Buckeyes are also looking to add a top-tier Defensive Tackle and they have a shot at a few of them. Louisiana’s own Rashard Lawrence, Georgia’s Antwuan Jackson, Texas’ Chris Daniels and North Carolina’s Dexter Lawrence. I believe with the recent Walker defection, it pretty much puts Rashan Gary out of the Buckeyes grasp.

The Buckeyes are also looking at bringing in another Wide Receiver to pair with Austin Mack and a pair of Florida products in Binjimen Victor and Nate Craig-Meyers. Binjimen Victor is the one who is most likely Buckeye-bound but with recruiting, you never now. Craig-Meyers would be a nice addition but he is currently trending toward Gainesville.

Lastly, the Buckeyes are still working to find 1-2 more Defensive Backs. Georgia’s Nigel Warrior, Pennsylvania’s Damar Hamlin and New Jersey’s Jordan Fuller are at the top of the Buckeye’s wish list. They are all playmakers and blue-chip prospects and it would be a welcomed addition to the class. They both are still up in the air and now it is just a waiting game.

Braxton Boo Boo:

This past week, Braxton Miller suffered an injury against Minnesota. A potential concussion to be exact. Coach Meyer said that Braxton just got the wind knocked out of him and now it is just a waiting game to see what the exact injury is or was. Coach Meyer said that he looked to be fine after they dressed down. Hopefully he comes back and hopefully the injury in question wasn’t that bad.

Poor Spartans:

Did you see the Spartans this past weekend? I for one think that caught a bad break. The receiver was not forced out of bounds. To make it worst, they lost to a lucky Nebraska team who are flat out terrible this year. Ohio State better trounce Illinois prior to their showdown with a potentially angry Spartans team who were robbed of a victory.

The Buckeyes were 7-0 with King Dolo Dale at the helm and now that our king has fallen, we welcome the Fallen Prince J.T. Barrett to state his case as a vital part of Ohio State royalty. Now we all cannot forget King Dolo Dale’s run toward Ohio State’s Title Run last season. We all mustn’t forget what he had accomplished as the man at Ohio State. He is after all undefeated as a starter. He is 10-0 as the starting Quarterback at Ohio State and that is a huge feat. He had no starting experience as a starting Quarterback and he did what he had to do and he did it so well, his legend grew as the Buckeyes marched toward the Inaugural Playoff Championship run.

Although he came in clutch for the last 10 games, he now finds himself behind J.T. Barrett. People forget that without J.T. Barrett we wouldn’t be in the position to even be considered for the College Football Playoffs. J.T. Barrett is now 12-1 as a starter with his only loss coming from a stout Virginia Tech defense. He looks to and he will continue to spark the Ohio State offense and he will put the team on his back. He has that chip on his shoulder and he is out to prove that Urban made the correct decision to make him the starter.

As we all saw, the offense runs smoother with J.T. as the starting Quarterback. As evidenced by this weekends romp of the hapless Rutgers team, I think it is safe to say that we are finally playing to our true potential. This was supposed to be a trap game, but the Rutgers were not ready for J.T. and company. Here is to more blow outs.

Bye Week Blues:

After a resounding win at Piscataway, New Jersey, I cannot wait for this bye week to be done and over with. I personally dislike bye weeks but I understand the need to rest injured players and the advantage it presents to prepare for the next game. It’ll give the team an extra week to identify what would work against their opponent and what they are weak against. It can also identify their tendencies and flaws on both sides of the ball. I cannot wait to see what the Buckeyes gameplan will be. Here’s looking to you Minnesota.

Last year the Golden Gophers had a huge serving of J.T. Barrett. I look for J.T. and company to have similar results, but with the whole team pitching in to an overall team win. I can see J.T. being his usual scrambling self once again. He will have another huge game and I would say that he will light up the scoreboard once again. So here is to a quick and fruitful bye week to plan for those pesky Gophers.

Urban Warfare:

With the win this Saturday Coach Meyer now has career win number 150. WOW!!! I cannot tell you how important he is to the Ohio State program and he has coached as advertised. Now there are a lot of haters out there who say that he feigned a heart attack because he lost his edge as a SEC coach and that the recent losses to Alabama had forced him to cower, but people need to have the common decently to realize that that was and is not the case.

Coach Meyer has taken control of this Ohio State roster and has churned out top recruiting classes in the last three Ohio State classes with Ohio State ranked as the number one class for both the 2016 and the 2017 classes. He has another National Championship after last years run so as a Buckeye fan, he has exceeded all expectations. Here is to more winning.

Recruiting Tidbits:

So recruiting is probably the second most important aspect of College Football with winning Championships. Recruiting can and often will change the tide and the direction of the a program and with what Coach Meyer and company have assembled, there is nothing but goodness that is coming to Ohio State.

Recruiting is also very unpredictable and in this day and age, with the needs and wants of the kids coming up in this era, it is more difficult than you would think it is. Everyone loves competition, but if recruits want to be a part of what could turn out to be a dynasty, come on and get on the legacy train. If not, it’s okay. I am not one of those fans who holds grudges over recruits not going to Ohio State. I am not naive enough to do that to 17 to 18 year olds.

Although, I would have loved to see Minkah Fitzpatrick and Juju Smith on the roster, I could understand that you win some and you lose some. Imagine if Coach Meyer reeled them both in and imagine what could of been. We are doing just fine. We stole Gareon Conley from TTUN and look at what he morphed into, another shutdown corner for the Buckeyes. That is why I do not doubt Urban’s recruiting tactics in recruiting because no matter what the star power count is he always has shown the knack to find and secure hidden gems throughout the country. No place is safe when Urban Meyer comes around as evidenced by last years class, snagging the top recruits from South Dakota and Utah last season, Grant Schmidt and Branden Bowen. Coach Meyer can have just about anyone from any state if they match what he wants to do on either offense or defense.

Do not worry about who leaves and decommits from the Buckeyes. If it frees up a coveted spot, then so be it because I know that the Ohio State coaches have a plan in place and it’ll only be just a matter of time. Go Buckeyes and let us use this bye week to continue to build relationships with inbound players. And let us hope that the current commits can continue to solidify relationships with each other and the highly ranked targets.

Big game is fast approaching. Even though we were fortunate to have Justin Coffin from hustlebelt.com on our podcast I wanted to share some questions along with his thoughts to those questions. We had Justin on our MotSaG Podcast so if you haven’t heard you can now. You can follow Justin on Twitter, very appreciative of him taking the time out to share Western Xichigan football with all of us.

MotSaG: What are the biggest concerns for the Broncos this weekend entering The Shoe?

1. The biggest concern for the Broncos is their run defense and by extension Ezekiel Elliot. In the Broncos’ two losses they gave up over 300 yards per game on the ground to both Michigan State and Georgia Southern, the latter of which rushed for 413 yards. If the Broncos are to contain the Buckeyes in any way, it will have to start by stopping the run to some degree, which is something the Broncos have yet to prove they can do. Another concern I think the Broncos should have is absorbing the initial punch by Ohio State. Last week NIU struck first and really set the tone for the rest of the game, and WMU must be prepared to handle some pressure should they fail to do the same.

MotSaG: Do you think Western Michigan will come in with a hybrid defense like others have been doing to disrupt the Buckeyes offense?

HB: The defensive schemes of Hawaii and Northern Illinois seem to be the hot topic surrounding the Buckeye’s recent struggles offensively. I’m not really in a position to gauge what WMU’s coaching staff is thinking coming into this game, but I think it would certainly be foolish not to try something similar. Personnel differs from team to team, and I’m sure Urban Meyer has something up his sleeve to beat some of these “hybrid” schemes, so WMU will have to put its own spin on what the Huskies did last week in order have similar success. Whatever that wrinkle is, the Broncos will have to commit players to the box to stop Elliot and the rushing attack. The defensive front is simply too undersized – while not lacking for speed – and will have its hands full if too many players are committed to pass coverage. The Bronco pass defense has some new faces this season that are coming into form like safety Asantay Brown, and old faces looking to find their previous form – Ronald Zamort, the nation leader in passes defended last season, but perhaps the most interesting piece is last year’s third leading wide receiver, Darius Phillips, who made the switch to defense and has quickly become the best corner on the team.

MotSaG: What do you think or have seen is the weaknesses of the Buckeyes defense?

HB: Well, the Buckeye defense is only allowing just over 12 points per game, so they are definitely doing something right to cause these power outages. I’m not sure there is one, true weakness. I’m not even sure Northern Illinois did much to expose anything on that side of the ball, either. They amassed just 190 yards of total offense and didn’t even crack the century mark through the air, the beneficiaries of some good field position and turnovers. Speaking of which, Ohio State is very lucky the defense has been so good. Insulating an offense from five turnovers is difficult, and I’m not sure it can be done two weeks in a row. But since I can’t answer by saying Ohio State’s offense is its defense’s biggest weakness, I suppose I need to find something else. If Ohio State has a vulnerability it will be through the passing game, and WMU has a wide receiving corps that can expose just about any secondary in the country if its quarterback has time to throw.

MotSaG: Three keys for the Broncos to walk out Columbus with a victory?

HB: Three keys for a Bronco victory on Saturday

Contain Zeke Elliot

WMU isn’t going to take anybody’s run game away completely, but if you look at WMU’s first two games of the season, the defense gave up a ton of yards on the ground but felt good coming out of the first game and, well, not so much in the second. The reason for this is the lack of a big play on the ground. The Broncos gave up a ton of yards rushing to Michigan State, but never allowed scampers of over half a football field like it did to Georgia Southern a week later. I looked at the box score for OSU’s most recent game (one that I watched start to finish) and was pretty shocked that Elliot’s numbers were still pretty good. He’s going to get his yards, but I think if the Broncos make it difficult to find space, they have a chance to stick around in this one.

Keep Terrell Upright

To win you have to score more points than the other team, right? Ohio State is giving up just 12 per game and I’ll guarantee WMU gives up quite a few more than 12 points on Saturday. If the Broncos are going to keep pace with the Buckeyes, they need to give their quarterback time to throw. Zach Terrell (Fort Wayne, Indiana) is regarded as one of the best in the MAC, and completed 67.9% of his passes last season. So far this year it’s been a bit of a roller coaster for Terrell, going from being very good against Michigan State to very poor against Georgia Southern. If the Broncos get the best of Terrell on Saturday, they can pick apart a very good secondary, but Bronco fans won’t get a chance to see that if Joey Bosa and company are pounding him into the turf.

Score without your offense

A major reason WMU was able to stick around against the Spartans was a 100 yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Darius Phillips. In fact, Phillips had a career high in return yards in a game that day, and he did it all in just the first quarter. Another performance like that out of Phillips will go a long way towards taking some of the pressure off of the Bronco offense to move the ball.

MotSaG: What are your predictions for the game?

HB: I don’t take pleasure in picking against my alma mater, but if NIU couldn’t do it with 5 turnovers, then I don’t see any way the Broncos can pull this off in Columbus. P.J. Fleck was an assistant on Jim Tressel’s staff in 2006, so maybe he will have some insight for WMU on how to deal with the environment at The Shoe, but words can only help so much. I think WMU responds well to an initial punch by the Buckeyes and fades gradually into the fourth quarter. 42-17 in favor of Ohio State sounds about right to me.

Once again thank you to Justin for all his help this week. Lets go Buckeyes!!

We had the opportunity to get with Dwight Lester (@HokieHiVP107) of fightinggobbler.com. We were able to ask his some questions and he ask us that Virginia Tech fans have. You can listen to our podcast that we did with Dwight. Here are some questions he was so graciously able to answer so we could share with you, our readers.

MotSaG: Do you feel Virginia Tech’s defense is going to get to Buckeye quarterback an unprecedented seven times and force 3 interceptions again? Will they be as stiffing as to not allow Ohio State to hardly convert any 3rd downs again? In other words will the Hokie defense be as good as last season.

FG: Last year’s game was about as perfect a scheme and execution as you could have in a big game spot. Bud Fosters “Bear Defense” Cover 0 scheme seemed to be just what the doctor ordered. However, if the scheme had not worked there was not really a backup plan for a defensive scheme. The scheme was amazing but the talent to execute it was there for the Hokies. Believe it or not the defense we have this year might be better than last years. We return our entire front four which includes Dadi Nicolas and Luther Maddy. Also, the secondary is healthy and extremely talented with Kendall Fuller leading the way.

So to answer your question do I believe we will have the same kind of success the answer is no probably not as much success as in 7 sacks and 3 picks. That being said I do believe we have the talent to get to the quarterback and possibly force turnovers. I am not naïve enough to believe the same defense will work two years in a row, however I believe Bud Foster will have more tricks up his sleeve. Foster is an unreal defensive mind and with the talent the Hokies possess across the defensive front and an entire summer to come up with a new scheme I look for the game to be a very interesting chess match.

MotSaG: Ezekiel Elliott had a broken wrist was only given eight carries, Buckeye offensive line and J.T. Barrett only had 2 starts when Virginia Tech came into Columbus and DOMINATED, do you feel that if that game was played towards the end of the season we would have been looking at the same results?

FG: A fanboy answer would be “yeah we beat you once why couldn’t we do it again”. The actual answer is more than likely we would have gotten blown out. Where the Buckeyes grew together as a team and got better as the year progressed the Hokies took a different path. We were devastated by injuries all across the board. We went through 4 running backs being lost for the season, two defensive lineman, two separate secondary players, and 3 off our offensive line just to name a few players. The Hokies seemed to take the momentum they gained from a huge road victory and flush it down the commode. After all we were struggling at the end of the year to keep our 22 bowl game streak alive. Honestly, even if we played another perfect game at the end of the year against the Buckeyes I believe we would have come up short because of all the injuries.

MotSaG: How in the world did the Hokies come into The Horseshoe and dominate the way they did and turn around and get beat by lesser talent? Is this a coaching issue, Beamer didn’t get his guys up for lesser opponents? Is it time for a coaching change I know they is speculation this season or next might be his last.

FG: I don’t think is necessarily a coaching issue or a motivation issue for the Hokies. For some reason the Hokies have the knack of losing to teams they have no business even being in close games with. For some reason it seems the Hokies most times play down to the competition. The prevailing theory is no matter what is said by the coaching staff in pregame the team sometimes gets too loose before games. All Hokie fans have nightmares about losing to lesser teams the James Madison Game was the most recent nightmare.

As far as a coaching change, Beamer is going to get to leave on his own terms. He has a similar type of equity as the likes of Bobby Bowden and Joe Paterno had before they choose to retire. That being said Beamer might be on the downward slide toward his retirement. Last season Beamer had some surgery which forced him to coach from the press box. His son Shane took over the coaching duties on the field and in the media which was very telling to most Hokie fans, as Bud Foster is believed to be the Heir to the Hokie head coaching job. If Beamer’s health holds he could coach for possibly 5 more years however, the better bet is for his impressive tenure to end after next season. I say next season because of the Hokies much anticipated game against Tennessee at Bristol Motor Speedway. Beamer has done most of the promotion for the game and with a not so stable coaching position at Tennessee the game officials probably want a familiar face to remain.

MotSaG: Seems the Hokies offense has been very inconsistent, what should Buckeye fans keep an eye out for that might become a major spark for Virginia Tech this season.

FG: Three major players to watch out for on the offensive side of the ball will be JC Coleman, Bucky Hodges of course Michael Brewer. Coleman is the Hokies starting running back this season after being 4th on the depth chart last season. He is a beast on the field and in the weight room. Some of his bench and squat numbers are unbelievable for a guy his size. Coleman revamped the Hokies rushing attack. When Colman became the starter the yards per carry went from 3.6 to 6.4.
Bucky Hodges is a nightmare matchup for all of the Hokies opponents. His size and speed are unreal assets for him as a player. Hodges can literally lineup anywhere in the offense, which is a huge weapon for the Hokies. I look for Hodges to have a huge season starting with the Ohio State game.

Michael Brewer is the quarterback that could not miss last season against Ohio State. However, for the majority of the season he was wildly inconsistent. Brewer however, is another year older, and has a better grasp on the offense. Brewer made some great plays with his feet last year as well as his arm. Brewer will have to play well for the Hokies to have a chance against the Buckeyes.

MotSaG: Unfortunately its been a while since we have heard VT mentioned for National Championship contention. Can this be the team to restart the discussion and bring the Hokies to the table and challenge for the ACC?

FG: I think this team is more talented than the teams we have had in the past years. A run the ACC championship is not out of the question at all. However, a run to the college football playoff might be a little out of reach this year. The Hokies need a good season with success in order to get the program back on track towards the National Championship picture. A win over the Buckeyes would give this year’s a huge boost of momentum towards a goal of a championship this season, and a huge boost towards recruiting. There is a place in the Athletic Center reserved for a national championship trophy whether or not if I will see the space filled or not is yet to be seen.

I would like to thank Dwight Lester of fightinggobbler.com once again for joining us this week to discuss the big Monday night game. Can’t wait to get this going as I am sure you feel the same way. If you want to know our predictions don’t forget to listen to our show, we would love to here some of your predictions. Feel free to let us know in the comment section.

It all started two years ago with my grandmother and a man by the name of Curtis Grant.

Perhaps some Buckeye fans remember Grant and some don’t. He was a five star linebacker prospect out of the state of Virginia who had massive expectations coming into his first season at Ohio State. He was dubbed by many as the next legendary Buckeye linebacker following the line of Jack Tatum, AJ Hawk, James Laurinaitis, Chris Spielman, and many more.

But Grant underachieved to put it nicely in his first couple years at Ohio State, and he even suffered the loss of his father in his junior season. This gave him doubts about continuing his football career, but he returned and did so not by being the next Tatum or Spielman, but by being the best Curtis Grant that he could be – and fortunately enough, I got the chance to meet him.

Being from Richmond, Virginia myself, I do not live far from where Grant played his high school football, at Hermitage High School. At the time, my grandmother was in her last few months of her life after a battle with breast cancer. Her Hospice nurse noticed our Buckeye fanaticism and mentioned that she knew Grant from high school. A week or so later when the team had a break to go home, Grant entered our living room to see my grandma.

This was shortly after the passing of Grant’s father, so he was by no means obligated to visit us or even care. He did anyway. He greeted my grandma with a hug and talked to her about how she was doing. Despite her condition, I saw the smile that it brought to her face.

It’s not every day that one gets to meet the captain of the football team from The Ohio State University, but I along with my grandma and family enjoyed the moment. She along with the rest of us asked Grant questions about the team, who at the time was preparing for their showdown against Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship Game.

My father and I then showed Grant our Ohio State themed basement, and he said that he had never seen anything like it. His first comment was, “Y’all definitely are no fair-weather fans.”

He walked around the room in awe of the memorabilia that my dad has collected over the years. But after the tour of the room, Grant gave my grandmother a piece of memorabilia that held way more worth than any of the memorabilia that we already had – including star lineman Orlando Pace’s real locker from his playing days, more worth than our 2002 National Championship tickets, and even more worth than our single football with a signature from every one of Ohio State’s Heisman Trophy winners.

He presented her with an Ohio State sweatshirt signed by him also with the initials – “BWP.” Bless With a Purpose.

Leading into his senior season, his starting role was in jeopardy to current linebacker Raekwon McMillan, another five star linebacker from Georgia. But Grant put those doubts to rest as he became the captain of the defense, a captain of the team, and the captain of the return of the Silver Bullets.

My grandmother eventually passed away about a month later. The Buckeyes fell to the Spartans that season, but they obviously followed that up with an impressive season after that. She didn’t get to see Grant and the Buckeyes win the National Championship the next year, but I imagine that she was keeping an eye out from heaven. I would also imagine that Grant’s father was watching along with her.

It was awesome for my family and I to have a personal connection to the 2014 championship team, but even if the Buckeyes had fallen this short of that feat, all that truly mattered was Grant’s blessing that he gave to my grandmother. If there is anything that Grant taught me during his visit that I could apply to my own life, it was simply to Bless With a Purpose.

The last few years I have made the trek down I-71 from Northeast Ohio down to Columbus for the Arnold Classic. No I’m not into the whole weightlifting scene as time on that has passed me by, but I think (in my mind anyways) at my size I can get away at looking like a former lifter. Honestly its kind of refreshing that this is a place at my size that I don’t get any stares or people saying man your a big guy. I digress to what has brought me a sense of pride especially so much so this year. Columbus is like a second home to me, my second city behind Cleveland. The Land will always be my home and have that special tug at my heart but there is something about Columbus that has a special spot also. No its definitely not the drivers down here (your a bunch of crazy selfish thugs). Its The Ohio State University,The Scarlet and Gray, The Buckeye Leaf, The Buckeye Nation.

Many of us if fortunate enough to get to spend quality time with our fathers, want to be like them and love the same things as them. I was no different growing up watching Browns, Indians, Cavs, and Buckeye games with my Dad. When he use to score tickets to go to any of these events it was the best thing (there was no HD and 100 camera angles when I was a kid). Walking into the Old Cleveland Stadium had a great feeling but it honestly felt like it needed to be redone or fixed up especially when you were forced to watched a Browns game behind a pillar at least the Indians games you were able to move closer to the field because there wasn’t many fans showing up at all. Cavalier games were a trek to the Richfield Coliseum but that place was fantastic (sorry Q your really a good stadium but the Richfield was better IMO). Getting to go to The Shoe was the best. Nothing ever compared. You could tell that it was (and still is) an old stadium but even to this day I still get goosebumps every time I enter the Rotunda going into the greatest stadium in all of college football. The House that Harley built, the greats that have played on that field, coached on the sidelines, The Best Damn Band in The Land and what they do and have done on that field, the feats that were accomplished on that track (yes there use to be a track in The Shoe youngins Google it).

The last week there has been a flood of news coming out about The Ohio State University and its all been so positive its great. Yes I know that there is more to OSU than football (heck I’m going to the men’s regular season finale against Wisconsin). There is the B1G Championship Wrestling Tournament taking place on the campus right now, women’s basketball team has a really bright future with Mitchell and Hart plus the other sports in general are really on the rise. Buckeye Nation has so much to be proud of right now its not even funny. The reason we key so much on football especially here at MotSaG is that is what you our readers are telling us you are looking at which is great. 2010-2011 the Buckeye football program took a huge black eye and some really came after the Buckeyes (I’m looking at you four letter network). Jim Tressel “The Senator” “The Sweatervest” was forced to resign in May of 2011. Everything was so bleak, many were calling for AD Gene Smith’s head (I was in that camp) for what felt like his arrogance of not self imposing a bowl ban on 2011 season.

November 2011 a new era was born, Urban Meyer was hired as the leader of the Buckeye program. Buckeye Nation was ecstatic the rest of the nation was not at all.

I’ve had this on the back of my pick up truck since Jan 2012 “Urban Renewal- Restoring Greatness inside the Horsehoe”. Urban’s first season the man leads the Buckeyes to a 12-0 record and should have played against Notre Dame and won the National Championship that year but no we really were the one’s catfished thanks to Gene Smith right (more on that later). 2013 the Buckeyes go 12-2 only losses were the ones that meant something, MSU in B1G Championship game and Orange bowl to Clemson. 2014 starts off shaky with Braxton going down and the loss to Virginia Tech. Meyer and company kept the team together and grew stronger and was getting better. There were still skeptics like myself before the Michigan State game but they came out and showed this is a team lead by one of the greatest coaches of our time. We all know what happened to finish off the year and coach Meyer wasn’t even B1G Coach of the Year. Yes as a homer I and all of Buckeye Nation was out raged but the ones in the national media who know and understand football like Phil Steele claimed that Meyer was COY. What was interesting was what Jon Gruden recently said

“What he did at Ohio State, losing a Heisman Trophy candidate and then doing what he did with two different quarterbacks that were backups. Amazing to me.”

How can you argue with that? Urban Meyer has Restored Greatness inside the Horseshoe plus what he is doing with these kids and teaching them leadership and turning them into men . You aren’t hearing of the Florida problems that were all his fault that supposedly followed him here but mysteriously have gone away, because kids have bought in and know there are consequences for their actions in Ohio. In my opinion it seems like a lot of covering up going up in the Whole State of Florida. I don’t want to make accusations but honestly three different universities and their issues and its always business as usual just saying.

Remember the catfishing I was saying about the Gene Smith situation? Well lets be men here and say everyone makes mistakes, they still got a ring for that season (I’m looking at you Mark May, You mad Bro). Smith is only the eighth athletic director for The Ohio State University, been going strong since March 5, 2005. I know it can be easy sitting on the outside saying if “I was in that position I would do this”, until your in that position you don’t know all the variables. Smith has put the Buckeyes on the map as a destination to bring in the best coaches in all sports, Bringing in Meyer, Matta who has turned the Buckeyes into a school that you can say plays basketball too, and recently brought Kevin McGuff to lead the woman’s basketball program who is on the verge of blowing up if they can get past the injuries, just to name a few. Gene Smith has been the leader who has helped turned the Buckeye Athletic program into one of the Top 10 of all of Sports Programs in the Nation per Forbes.

“The culture of OSU Athletics is one of excellence that is focused on the growth and development of each person. It is an environment where all individuals are valuable members of the team with ideas to contribute and given the opportunity to lead those efforts. The department provides traditional education opportunities as well as engage’s employees with projects to stretch them and grow new skills. Individuals are given autonomy at the local level to determine what works best for their group. Gene [Smith] truly supports each individual and allows them to lead. It is a culture of we and not me as cliché as that sounds. I am very thankful for the opportunity the Buckeye’s have given me to grow my professional skills.” – Janine Oman, Assoc Athletics Director Sport Administration/Sport Performance

Yes a National Championship does bring in a ton of pride into a University and fan base, but honestly I can’t remember feeling so much pride for the Scarlet and Gray as I feel now as when they last won their National Championship. This is due to the leaders like Gene Smith who has went out and found quality leaders to lead each individual program with pride and turn the young men and women who play for the Buckeyes into great leaders of tomorrow. I would personally like to thank Gene Smith for what he has done and all of the coaches who work there butts off to help build a better tomorrow by being the greatest.

The good guys pulled away late against the evil empi… well, more like a local coffee shop from the North on Saturday but it came with a price-J.T. Barrett is out for the season and Ohio State is down another leading man before taking on the Badgers in Indianapolis in a few days.

I’ve never seen a team have such horrible luck as the 2014 Ohio State squad- Oh wait, I have. Somehow it seems like every player on my Blue Jackets has AIDS…

Honestly I don’t think they have enough healthy bodies to change a light-bulb.

Unfortunate hockey players aside, somehow the regular season is over (except for the communist Big 12) and conference awards are being announced. Being a negative fan, this makes me sick.

These coaches and players don’t need their already huge egos fed so it’s time to put some people in their place. I’ve decided to give out some shame awards to some really messed up people. It’s time to make some people feel really bad.

Put on your nicest jean jacket-Here is the first ever Big Ten Player Hatin’ Awards:

Heathen of the Year:

What is the best food option if it’s ten degrees outside and you need a bite to eat? You eat a damn dilly bar as this Minnesota electronics coordinator did.

OL 2: Bryan Stonkus, Rutgers– He’s probably a nice guy but his name just gives off a vibe of a really gross dude.

DL 1: Thieren Cockran, Minnesota– His first name reeks of a pretentious Shakespeare character, his last name…

DL 2: Taco Charlton, Michigan– My brother also grew up with this young man but every time I see him play I get real hungry and somehow end up at Taco Bell which adds to my gut that is growing at an alarming rate. Please graduate soon.

LB 1: Zepheniah Grimes, Illinois– Simply dismal.

LB 2: D’Cota Dixon, Wisconsin– This makes zero sense homey. Is substituting an ‘ really saving you that much more time than using an A?

The Bucks are 2 wins from clinching a berth in the Big Ten Championship game but the fans are thinking bigger. Ohio State is now just 4 spots away from a spot in the College Football Playoff and they are as hot as any team in the country. With more carnage to occur in spots 1-7 the Buckeyes simply need to take care of business and see what happens.

The toughest test left in the regular season is a road trip to Southern Canada… I mean Minneapolis and many are labeling the match-up with an all too familiar term-

Trap game: A game following an emotional and impressive victory against an underrated team that is a heavy underdog.

Oh and the game is being played in the North Pole…

With a high temperature of around 20 degrees and possible snow showers the game this Saturday will separate the manly men from the weak. There is no excuse for Ohio State to overlook a pretty good team on Saturday but crazier things have happened (I’m looking at you Auburn).

Here is everything you need to know about the game Saturday at noon:

Opponent: University of Minnesota Golden Gophers–

Over 50,000 students

Established in 1851

7 national championships

18 Big Ten Championships

660-493-44 all time record

7-43 record vs. Ohio State

7-2 record this season (4-1 Big Ten)

Stadium: TCF Bank Stadium

Capacity: 52,525

Total cost: $303 million

Field tuf

Important Players:

QB- Mitch Leidner: 81/152 1,225 yards 10 TD 6 Int.

RB- David Cobb: 227 attempts 1,205 yards 8 TD.

TE- Maxx Williams: 22 receptions 326 yards 7 TD.

Buckeye Offense vs Gopher Defense:

Minnesota is ranked 22nd in total defense, 37th against the run and 26th against the pass. They are among the best in the nation at intercepting the ball with only 8 teams with more picks who have played the same number of games. The numbers don’t lie; the Gophers are a pretty good defense.

With the weather concerns Ohio State will certainly look to run the ball early against a solid Minnesota run defense. The loss of Rod Smith will probably hurt in this game more than any other left on the schedule. Coach Urban Meyer said that Ezekiel Elliot is a little banged up and another 230 pound running back to throw out there would be a nice luxury in a grinding November game.

The offensive coaches said they emptied the playbook against Michigan State and it will be interesting to see if the coaches will decide to air it out in rough conditions. As long as the wind is not hurricane-like, one can expect the Bucks to take a lot of deep shots. The two losses on Minnesota’s schedule were to teams that run the spread with mobile quarterbacks- TCU and Illinois. Expect Barrett to have plenty of space to make plays.

The matchup to watch will be the Ohio State wide receivers and H-backs against the playmaking secondary of Minnesota. The coaches said that Noah Brown is ready for playing time and the 240 pounder may help fill the void of Rod Smith. Jailin Marshall from the wildcat looks here to stay and don’t be surprised to see him throw a few passes Saturday afternoon.

Bold Prediction: Barrett rushes for over 100 yards.

Gopher Offense vs Buckeye Defense:

Minnesota is an old school offense that centers on the run and play action pass. They sit at the 59th scoring offense with a top 30 rushing attack. The weakness is the passing game which is the worst in the nation for a Power 5 team other than Boston College. Averaging 140 yards a game is pretty gross…

The Buckeye will certainly crowd the line of scrimmage and dare quarterback Mitch Leidner to throw deep to his wide receivers. The biggest threat in the passing game is tight end Maxx Williams. He caught three touchdowns last week and displayed outstanding hands to help destroy Iowa. All three touchdowns were inside the ten yard line so Chris Ash and Luke Fickell should know where the ball is going in goal line situations.

Like Ezekiel Elliot, David Cobb is flying under the radar in the best of the Big Ten running backs talk- and that’s a shame. The senior from Texas has already passed a thousand yards rushing and is averaging 5.3 ypc. He must be Ohio State’s main focus as the Buckeyes were gashed by the MSU running game in spots last week. Curtis Grant and Raekwon McMillan should be licking their chops because Ohio State will be in a 3 Linebacker set for the whole game. This helps ease the loss of nickelback Armani Reeves who is somewhere in the Bermuda triangle… Nobody will say what his problem is. How the linebackers play will determine whether the Gophers can stay close in the scoring department. Missed tackle issues started creeping up against a very good Spartan offense last week.

Bold prediction: Minnesota will have less than 250 yards of offense.

How it will end up:

On an extremely cold day after an extremely tough win against a… pretty good team I think the Bucks win by a few touchdowns. Minnesota will be able to get some yardage on the ground and their defense will hold the Buckeyes to below their average.

It will be a lot tougher than most think but I think the Buckeyes control the whole game with a few scares here and there.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

Ohio State sliced through the Michigan State defense Saturday night and made it look easier than finding a parking spot at a driver’s ed. class. The Buckeyes won 49 – 37 and there is not much to be negative about this week which makes it a perfect time for a little self reflection…

My preview post for last weeks game listed ten events that needed to happen/not happen for the heroes to return home triumphant after a short trip up north. I named each fact after made up movies for no reason at all- please ignore this. I have a feeling I was way off and I need to take my whooping. Come with me on a self centered journey and we’ll dissect my predictions together.

Let’s see how much I truly know about this great sport (last week’s post in Italics):

10. No More Carnage:

Plot: How much more confident would Ohio State feel if they walked into Saturday’s battle with Braxton Miller, Noah Spence and Rod Smith? The team has been relatively lucky with injuries and suspensions for the most part but no more A list actors can be cut or this movie will be the next Gigli.

Grade: C+

Tough to say either way. Only reason for the + is that Eli Apple was secretly hurt and his missing the first series cost the team 6 points.

9. Dos La rotación de existencias:

Plot: Yes I googled the Spanish word for turnovers and I’m still not sure if I used it right. I think Ohio State needs to create at least two turnovers to take down Sparty in this foreign film.

Grade: F-

Completely wrong- Ohio State needed 0 turnovers in the victory. I feel dumber than an Alabama fan trying to file taxes. Jimbo’s Coffee and Handguns Cafe does a horrible job of keeping W2 forms on file.

8. Reaction:

Plot: Tom Herman and Urban Meyer have taken some heat for the play calling in close games recently and it seems the answers to what opposing defenses are showing them are not figured out until after the game. That can’t happen this week; Dantonio will throw some confusion at the young guns and in game adjustments need to be on point or similar offensive outputs to VA Tech and PSU could be on the way.

Grade: A-

Coach Herman and Meyer were counting cards and knew what was coming from the Spartan defense. Fans couldn’t have asked for a better gameplan and in game adjustments.

7. Pick One:

Plot: Moving the ball will be tough against the Spartans and giving them a short field is a death sentence. J.T. Barrett will make some freshmen throws and for Ohio State to win only one of them can fall into a Spartan’s gut.

Grade: C-

Grading myself pretty hard here for assuming Barrett would have any bad throws at all. Man that kid was tossing the rock.

6. South of 250:

Plot: If Connor Cook goes over 250 passing yards then I would guess that Ohio State is dead in the water.

Grade: F-

If you would have told me Connor Cook would throw for nearly 360 yards I would have been booking my tickets to some poopy Florida bowl instead of buying Big Ten Championship tickets.

5. Eastern Silence:

Plot: Nothing helps a really young team win in a hostile environment better than a quick start. East Lansing needs to be punched in the face and shut up early to help with the audibles Barrett loves to call at the line of scrimmage. The crowd will be rough but not near as rambunctious as the Penn State bunch.

Grade: F+

I’ll give myself the generous + here for the fact that Ohio State moved the ball a little bit on their first drive before our favorite German left a 49 yard kick short. It showed the Spartan faithful that Ohio State was very capable of moving the ball right off the bat. The F is for falling for the fact that a MSU crowd could affect the game at all. Their students don’t even want to be at games.

4. Breakdown Limit:

Plot: The two least experienced units on Ohio State’s squad are the two that will decide the outcome in my opinion. How the offensive line and secondary handle the confusion that will be headed there way will mean everything. Breakdowns that allow sacks and give up big plays cannot happen often this week.

Grade: B+

The offensive line played great and the fat guys only had a few minor mistakes in the first half. The secondary wasn’t outstanding but they certainly limited the big play after the first drive.

3. Seven Touches:

Plot: Dontre Wilson and Jalin Marshall need at least 7 offensive touches each to exploit the Spartan defense as Oregon and Purdue seemed to use in getting the edge. If this doesn’t happen then some serious discussions need to be made about who the Buckeyes are.

Grade: F-

Not only did these two only have a combined seven offensive touches but they accounted for three fumbles total (I’m pinning the punt disaster on Marshall).

I am a complete failure; I thought these guys would be the difference in the game and they may have been the only reason this game wasn’t a four touchdown victory.

To be fair I still love both guys and they still each had a shining moment.

2. 40 Yards to Happiness:

Plot: Michigan State is not the type of team to give up chunks of yards at a time. To put up enough points to win I think Ohio State needs at least 3 plays over 40 yards.

Grade: A+

Ohio State had four crucial big plays over 40 yards. My saving grace was this very safe prediction and I guess I’ll take it.

1. The Man Who Saved the World in 60 Minutes Under a Full Moon Using Only His Bare Hands and a Ponytail:

Plot: Joey Bosa steals the show and Connor Cook’s girlfriend in the baddest ass movie of all time.

Grade: F-

Not only did Bosa have his worst statistical game, he put his beautiful hair on the bench with a ski cap…

Still my sun and stars was creating havoc and opening up the wormholes for Michael Bennett and caused a few holds.

Prognosis: Idiot Total GPA: 1.71 = D

Ugggg that was as ugly as one of those greasy Ole Miss frat boy’s look. Live and learn right?

On deck: The fighting Goofs of Minnaysowta. They got a pretty good team and it looks to be a high of around 20. Yipes, glad I’ll be in toasty Columbus that day. I just booked my tickets to the BTCG and a loss to the Gophers would not only ruin the Buckeye’s national championship dreams but it will also mean I just over-drafted my checking account for nothing…

I’ll be doing the preview this week (assuming the higher ups don’t read this disaster) so look for that around Thursday or Friday.

Oh and don’t forget that Buckeye basketball tips off Friday against Umass-Lowell

Bonus: Those of you who haven’t gotten your new smart phone yet here is a hilarious Portlandia scene:

Double Bonus: Since the Browns are in first I can now laugh at this. THEY KILLED HIM!